Red-Shouldered Hawk
Buteo Lineatus
  • Black and White Flight Feathers
  • RED SHOULDERS
The Red-Shouldered Hawk's scientific name is Buteo Lineatus. This bird comes from the Buteo family.
The Red-Shouldered Hawk is a hawk that isn't seen very often. It does tend to
fly over Hawk Mountain as part of its migration. The Red-Shouldered Hawk can
be found in small flocks or it can fly independently.
Red shouldered hawks are also the arch-enemy of crows, because they chase each other out of their territories, but might join forces to kill much larger prey

Red-Shouldered Hawk pictures
external image Red-shouldered-Hawk-flight-.jpgexternal image w_Red-shoulderedHawk_lrg.jpgexternal image 3205389-md.jpg
http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Red-shouldered_Hawk/id

The Red Tailed Hawk


On our trip to hawk mountain I did not spot any red tailed hawks. Lucky for me, there are tons of red tailed hawks in our area. When I was out walking my dogs one time, I looked up and on a bare tree in the middle of the field, there was a red tailed hawk. This makes sense because red tailed hawks like to perch on high objects near or in fields because they can easily see or hear their prey from up there. I have also seen a red tailed hawk multiple times at school on a tree in the middle of the quad. One day, I even saw the hawk swoop down, grab a squirrel, and start eating it in the branch of a tree. One of the reasons I think the red tailed hawk is an amazing bird is it's skill at hunting down, killing and eating it's prey. Overall, the red tailed hawk is an amazing bird that I observe from time to time.

red_tailed_hawk_1.jpgred_tailed_hawk_2.jpgred_tailed_hawk_3.jpgred_tailed_hawk_4.png

The Red-tailed Hawk

Feature of the hawk
  • broad, rounded wings
  • short, wide tail
  • looks like an eagle from a distance
Color
  • rich brown above
  • pale, streaked underside
  • cinnamon red tail
  • no red tail if the bird is juvenile.
Behavior
  • mostly seen soaring above fields
  • they don't flap much but they use heavy wing beats and soar
  • when it is windy, they hover facing the wind
  • they attack in slow but controlled dive
Habitat
  • they like the open country
  • it is found above fields, on poles,and on fence posts
  • it can also be found on trees standing alone
  • not big forest birds because of the prey they hunt
Food
  • 80%-85% of their diet is small rodents
  • mammals as large as rabbits can be eaten
  • reptiles and other birds make up the rest of their diet
  • they do not store food
Predation
  • they do not have many predators
  • great horned owls and Corvids are known to eat eggs or nest-lings
Human Threats
  • humans can create loss of habitat for the birds
  • humans can also shoot the birds (illegal in the US)
  • a huge human threat is automobile collisions
  • humans can interfere with the nesting of these birds
  • lead poison from eating food that contains lead shot
Migration
  • these hawks usually come through hawk mountain in
Links
hawk sound